Process for producing a cuboidal body from plastic and cuboidal body made of plastic

ABSTRACT

The invention relates to a process for producing a cuboidal body from two different plastics materials, for example a die or a container, wherein shaped elements, for example spheres or cubes, are attached at the corners of the body. In a first process step, the basic body of the body is produced from a first plastics material without shaped elements in an injection-molding operation and, in a second process step, the shaped elements consisting of a second plastics material are molded on with interconnecting elements connecting the shaped elements. Furthermore, the invention relates to a cuboidal body made of two different plastics materials, for example a die or a container.

[0001] The invention relates to a process for producing a cuboidal body from plastic, for example a die or a container, wherein shaped elements, for example spheres or cubes, are attached at the corners of the body.

[0002] The invention is based on the object of producing a cuboidal body from two different plastics materials at low cost. Furthermore, a low-cost cuboidal body made of two plastics materials is to be offered.

[0003] The object is achieved for the process by the features of patent claim 1. Advantageous variants of the process are described in the subclaims 2-4.

[0004] For the cuboidal body, the object is achieved by the features of patent claim 5. Advantageous embodiments of the body are described in the subclaims 6-9.

[0005] The process according to the invention serves for producing containers, for example spectacle cases, cosmetic containers, or else for producing toy dice. The toy dice with attached shaped elements have an unexpected rolling behavior, which is found to be particularly surprising.

[0006] In the case of the process according to the invention, firstly the basic body of the cuboidal body is produced in an injection-molding process. After that, in a second operation in an injection-molding process, the second material is injected and the shaped elements and the interconnecting elements for connecting the shaped elements are produced and, in particular, molded undetachably onto the basic body. In this case, a two-component injection-molding process (2-component process) is used in particular.

[0007] The process according to the invention makes it possible to attach shaped elements to cuboidal bodies by the injection-molding process, without the shaped elements having to be attached to the bodies at a subsequent time (for example by screwed connection or adhesive bonding).

[0008] In an advantageous variant of the process, the basic body has recesses which serve as injection channels and can be used for injecting the second plastics material for creating the shaped elements and interconnecting elements.

[0009] According to a particularly advantageous variant of the process, all the shaped elements and interconnecting elements, that is to say in the production of a die eight shaped elements and altogether twelve interconnecting elements connecting the shaped elements, are created in a single injection-molding operation by introducing the second plastics material into the interconnected recesses.

[0010] The injection opening for introducing the second plastics material can in this case advantageously lie approximately in the middle region of an interconnecting element. Consequently, all the regions intended for the attachment of the shaped elements and interconnecting elements can be reached from this injection region.

[0011] The body according to the invention, made of two different plastics materials, has a basic body made of a first plastics material and shaped elements and interconnecting elements connecting the shaped elements made of a second plastics material.

[0012] With the combination of the two plastics materials, the basic body may consist of polypropylene, acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene or polymethylmathacrylate [sic] [lacuna] the shaped and interconnecting elements may consist of thermoplastic elastomer (for example of ethylene-propylene-diene rubber and polypropylene).

[0013] The invention is explained in more detail on the basis of exemplary embodiments in the figures of the drawing, in which:

[0014]FIG. 1 shows a cuboidal body formed as a toy die,

[0015]FIG. 2 shows a first embodiment of a section A-A on the basis of FIG. 1,

[0016]FIG. 3 shows a second embodiment of a section A-A on the basis of FIG. 1 and

[0017]FIG. 4 shows a detail of a cuboidal body on the basis of FIG. 1 as a basic body without shaped elements and interconnecting elements.

[0018]FIG. 1 shows a cuboidal body 1 (here a die without inscription of the die faces), which has a basic body 2, wherein shaped elements 3 attached to this basic body 2 are interconnected by means of (partially concealed) interconnecting elements 4.

[0019] In the case of production on the basis of the process according to the invention, firstly the basic body 2, which has no interconnecting element [sic] 4 and shaped elements 3 and is depicted as a detail in FIG. 4, is produced.

[0020]FIG. 2 shows a section A-A of a first embodiment of a body 1 on the basis of FIG. 1. This reveals a recess 5, which is provided on the basic body 2 and serves for receiving the second plastics material for forming the interconnecting elements 4. According to FIG. 2, this recess 5 may be rectangular and, according to FIG. 3, formed as a bevel (for example with an angle of 45°).

[0021] In FIGS. 2 and 3, the extent of the interconnecting elements 4 is represented by broken lines. The representation in broken lines also corresponds to the hollow form of the mold for the second injection-molding operation. The cavity 6 created 0 is filled in the second injection-molding operation and an interconnecting element 4 on the basis of FIG. 1 is created.

[0022]FIG. 4 shows a basic body 2 with recesses 5 both [sic] in the region of the interconnecting elements 4 to be attached later and a, for example spherical-segment-like, recess 7 for receiving the shaped elements 3 The injection mold has in the region of the shaped elements 3 spherical recesses for receiving the second plastics material for the forming of the shaped elements 3 (not depicted in any more detail). 

1. A process for producing a cuboidal-body from two different plastics materials, for example a die or a container, wherein shaped elements, for example spheres or cubes, are attached at the corners of the body, and wherein, in a first process step, the basic body of the body is produced from a first plastics material without shaped elements in an injection-molding operation and, in a second process step, the shaped elements consisting of a second plastics material are molded on with interconnecting elements connecting the shaped elements.
 2. The process as claimed in claim 1, wherein, in the second process step, the shaped elements and interconnecting elements are injection-molded into recesses of the basic body.
 3. The process as claimed in claim 1, wherein, in the second process step, the material for all the shaped elements and interconnecting elements is injected via interconnected recesses.
 4. The process as claimed in claim 1, wherein, in the second process step, the material for producing the shaped elements and interconnecting elements is injected in the region of an interconnecting element.
 5. A cuboidal body made of two different plastics materials, for example a die or container with shaped elements in the corner regions, in particular produced on the basis of a process as claimed in claim 1, wherein the shaped elements (3) are interconnected by means of interconnecting elements (4).
 6. The cuboidal body as claimed in claim 5, wherein the basic body (2) consists of polypropylene and the shaped elements (3) and interconnecting elements (4) consist of thermoplastic elastomer.
 7. The cuboidal body as claimed in claim 5, wherein the basic body (2) consists of acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene and the shaped elements (3) and interconnecting elements (4) consist of thermoplastic elastomer.
 8. The cuboidal body as claimed in claim 5, wherein the basic body (2) consists of polymethylmethacrylate and the shaped elements (3) and interconnecting elements (4) consist of thermoplastic elastomer.
 9. The cuboidal body as claimed in claim 5, wherein the thermoplastic elastomer comprises ethylene-propylene-diene rubber and polypropylene. 